Seattle Seahawks mock draft: Best and worst-case scenarios for Mike Macdonald in 2024 NFL Draft
Mike Macdonald has a tough job following Pete Carroll in Seattle as he heads into his first NFL Draft as coach of the team with a lot of issues to address.
Geno Smith is seemingly the guy at quarterback in Seattle for the foreseeable future. He has rebuilt his career since moving to the Seahawks, which has allowed the team to develop in other areas.
Heading into the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seahawks need to look at their offensive line. The line is lacking experience; although drafting a player won’t necessarily help the experience factor, the quality at the top of the draft can massively improve the O-Line.
Tyrel Dodson and Jerome Baker signed on one-year deals in free agency to secure the linebacker position, but, ideally, the Seahawks need to find a long-term elite prospect in that position.
It’s somewhat difficult to predict just which of those two positions Macdonald will prioritize with the team’s first-round choice, and it could come down to who falls to the Seahawks at #16.
In the middle rounds of the draft, you can expect Seattle to target a safety. Jamal Adams and Quandre Diggs departed this offseason and need to be replaced. It may not be an ideal situation, and the team will have to find a player with upside rather than a bonafide starter from day-one, but they intend to draft someone to help their backfield.
Seattle Seahawks 2024 NFL mock draft scenarios
Seahawks mock draft: Best-case scenario
Sportskeeda’s 7-round Mock Draft simulator has provided us with a best-case scenario for the Seattle Seahawks and Mike Macdonald, and it sees them address the aforementioned roster needs really early on in the draft.
Many analysts are speculating that Troy Fautanu out of Washington is a perfect fit for Seattle, and that’s exactly where we have him going at no.16.
Fautanu is a player the Seahawks staff know well. He was coached at college by both the offensive coordinator and offensive line coach at Seattle. This knowledge of a player is invaluable in evaluating them and will ensure the Seahawks know how to best utilize him.
Fautanu is very athletic and knows how to use his pads and upper body to make life difficult for pass rushing defenders. Many consider him to be the best natural guard in the draft class and will make an immediate difference for the Seahawks’ offense.
Protecting Geno Smith is important, and this pick goes a long way to doing just that.
The Seahawks are able to address linebacker concerns by drafting Trevin Wallace out of Kentucky. Wallace had a career year in 2023 and is an athletic linebacker who can patrol all across the field.
He’s an exciting prospect because of how he attacks offensive players. He relishes tackles and could be a lightning rod on defense for a team. Seattle has a great history of linebackers in this style, and Wallace could easily become the next great one.
There's also a lot of room for development for Wallace, which makes this an even better selection. He can start right away, albeit learning from the veteran presences at the position already in the building. He’s going to be so much better in years two and three.
Seattle needs a center, and this simulation had them taking Charles Turner out of LSU. Whilst not necessarily as pro-ready as Zach Frazier, he's a player with quick feet who is adept at getting the jump on on-rushing defenders after the snap.
Effort plays are the best part of Turner’s arsenal. He can really control how a play develops with his work on the line of scrimmage, although his size is a concern for the future.
The Hawks are also able to address their need in the backfield with Tyler Nubin, a safety out of Minnesota.
Value is important this far down the draft process, and Nubin provides that. He reads plays incredibly well and can actually lead a secondary on the field. His ability to locate the ball quickly makes him a supreme playmaker, and he could totally disrupt offensive gameplans.
Seattle is a franchise built on a strong defense, and safeties are important to that. Nubin is a great pick here. He doesn’t make a lot of mistakes, and this would secure a very promising draft for Mike Macdonald.
Here’s how the draft played out in full:
· Troy Fautanu, OG, Washington
· Trevin Wallace, LB, Kentucky
· Charles Turner, OC, LSU
· Tyler Nubin, S, Minnesota
· Marcellas Dial, CB, South Carolina
· Marist Liufau, LB, Notre Dame
· Xavier Thomas, EDGE, Clemson
Seahawks mock draft: Worst-case scenario
On the opposite side of the coin, the worst-case scenario for the Seattle Seahawks sees the franchise ignore key needs on their roster. Offensively, the team is settled with a number of playmakers, so to focus on that instead of defensive starters would be bizarre.
Adonai Mitchell and Bucky Irving arriving with the opening two picks doesn’t do anything to bolster the team’s starting lineup, and the lack of protection for Smith from the offensive line would cause problems in 2024.
Not until Dylan McMahon do the Seahawks add a player who can play at guard, and that would be a huge disappointment for fans.
There's also a need at safety, as we’ve discussed, but after trading a lot of picks away, the Seahawks in this scenario are only able to add Kamren Kinchens and Demani Richardson in the final rounds of the draft.
That doesn’t bring the quality the team needs at the position and begs the question why they didn’t make better moves earlier. Here’s how the worst-case scenario picks played out:
· Adonai Mitchell, WR, Texas
· Bucky Irving, RB, Oregon
· Jonah Elliss, EDGE, Utah
· Curtis Jacobs, LB, Penn State
· Dylan McMahon, OG, NC State
· Kamren Kinchens, S, Miami (FL)
· Demani Richardson, S, Texas A&M